WEBUYCARS: Hitting Top Gear and Still Accelerating

South Africa’s automotive industry continues to move as a major driver of the economy – there is no swerving this indisputable fact. From manufacturing, distribution, technology, repair, after market, modification, and sales, the industry supports more than half a million jobs and contributes 4.3% of the country’s entire GDP.

It is the fuel of cities, it is the power of industries; the tough automotive industry connects South Africa, from Cape Agulhas to Musina. The likes of VW, Toyota, Ford, and BMW makes the cars that go out across the world. Some of the world’s best reside in the South African repair, mechanic, and engineering space. And one company leads the way in vehicle sales – WeBuyCars.

Established in 2001 by brothers Faan and Dirk van der Walt, the WeBuyCars journey started out in Pretoria. Doing almost everything themselves, the pair – who grew up fixing cars, and buying and selling – created a stable business, adding more people and more stock each year. By 2010, the company bough the land it traded on and built a showroom for 100 cars. After just six months of opening this new site, the purchase of neighbouring property became necessary as demand boomed. Advertising on billboards and in newspapers, the company quickly grew its presence, with space for 700 cars. From here, national expansion was the next gear.

OVERTAKING COMPETITION

By 2012, new managers were appointed, and by 2014, buyers were present in all of South Africa’s major metros. The following years saw the company open up significant showrooms in Cape Town and Durban, but in 2017 WeBuyCars laid a marker for the industry, cutting the ribbon to the largest car showroom in Africa, able to house 1100 cars under one roof in Centurion. By the end of 2019, the company employed its 1000^th member of staff, and in 2020 a new brand and a new website was launched to bring the service offering of the company fully digital.

The next mile marker for the company was dramatic. In 2021, after many had suffered through the pandemic – with the entire automotive industry struggling – WeBuyCars revved its engine, acquiring the former-Ticketpro Dome in Johannesburg. The 11,000m² exhibition and events space was converted into one of the world’s largest second-hand car dealerships.

“The Dome is evidence that WeBuyCars is an agile business, exercising good judgement and making quick decisions. In fact, the decision to buy this site was made in one day. The Dome is evidence that WeBuyCars is disruptive and restless,” said David Hurwitz, CEO of Transaction Capital – the company that took a R1.8 billion share in WeBuyCars in 2020.  

In 2022, the company is a different model altogether when compared to the business of 21 years ago. Today, owners of cars, bakkies, busses, bikes, trailers, caravans and boats can get quotes for their assets online, before welcoming an agent to their home to purchase these vehicles. WeBuyCars sells the assets on through its showrooms and weekly online auctions.

SHIFTING GEARS

Like most, the company has had to adjust to a set of issues that seem to come through like a traffic jam finally receiving a green light. In South Africa, floods, riots, political instability, energy, inflation, and interest rate rises have all hit consumers and businesses hard. Globally, the pandemic continues to leave a legacy, and the war in Ukraine continues to hamper international supply chains. The automotive sector in particular has been handbraked by a global shortage of semiconductor chips.

But WeBuyCars is a problem-solving company at its core. The founders have always been fixers, and bumps in the road are regularly overcome.

Total domestic sales for 2022 up until end of November sat at 487,2180, up 13.68% on the previous year. WeBuyCars was a strong player in this growth. In September, the company announced it had reached the milestone of purchasing 12,000 vehicles in a month. Chief Marketing Office, Rikus Blomerus said: “The number of transactions in the market increased from 1,633,003 to 1,659,395 from July 2021 to June 2022 versus the previous period, amounting to a 1.62% increase. Yet over the same time, our sales have increased by 39.12% due to our increased footprint, internal operational efficiencies, and technological advances.”

The result of this success was a move to a new 3000+m² office space in Centurion at the Byls Bridge Office Park, itself an exciting and beautiful development, home to may other continent-leading organisations.

The pandemic slowdown that hit the brakes for the industry saw many change their buying patterns as their situation changed. Importantly for WeBuyCars, many moved away from new car purchases and opted for used. This helped the company to cruise through, jumping from 6000 sales each month before March 2020, to 11,000 sales per month in February 2021. The average price of the cars sold reflected the new level of demand, accelerating by 8% in 2021.

WHOLE MARKET COVERED

In May, Wynand Beukes, Chief Digital Officer at WeBuyCars, told eNCA that the company had done all the right things when navigating the legacy of the pandemic, and would be there for those looking to manage their transport situation as the cost-of-living crisis grips.

“We didn’t see a big trend of more people selling their vehicles and registering vehicles. The great thing about WeBuyCars is that we grew by around 3% in our market in the past 12 months,” he said.

“If you look at what people are trading in and what they are buying after that, people who trade in hatchbacks go for hatchbacks again. But there is a trend for people trading in SUVs to go for smaller sedans that are more economical.”

The company expected that trend to continue as petrol prices spiked, and they were right. The petrol price sits today at R23.16 for unleaded 93 and R23.46 for unleaded 95, and this bites consumer wallets.

“Many of the enquiries on our website are for vehicles under R200,000,” added Beukes. “That is the great thing about WeBuyCars, we serve the whole market. We have everything and we buy everything.

“There is a stock shortage and that has been because of the floods in Durban for example. There has been a shortage on Toyotas and the market is waiting for them.

“We try to give as much information about the vehicle as possible, so that the consumer can make an informed decision,” he went on. “Right now, fuel efficiency is right at the top of the list of enquiries.”

Despite questions around affordability and household finances, WeBuyCars remains popular because it is not only a provider of excellent deals on used cars, covering the entire market spectrum, it is also a tool for money making as customers can quickly and easily sell their car should they want or need to. The process comes highly recommended and, according to most, is painless.

With new branches in place in Polokwane and Nelspruit bringing the company’s track mark to 13 in South Africa, there are more to come as WeBuyCars sees opportunity for sustained growth.

Plans are already being implemented to take the brand to Africa with a small operation active in Morocco and other markets in the headlights. Adding ancillary services including mechanical support and financing have been successful and, in collaboration with Transaction Capital, GoMo was launched as an inhouse personal finance offering, allowing customers to easily package insurance, maintenance, and a quality used vehicle.

Above all, the company’s deeply held values remain around quality customer service and delivery of superior products.

“At WeBuyCars you, our valued customer, always comes first,” the company states. “We pride ourselves on high quality, professional and safe service to ensure a hassle-free experience for you. We do not make use of third parties or agents. Over decades we have built solid relationships with car dealers across South Africa. Numerous dealers trust WeBuyCars to be the source from which they obtain quality vehicles. We are committed to customer service, trust and adding value to the distribution network.

“As South Africa’s number one car buying and selling service,” it continues, “WeBuyCars buys and sells thousands of vehicles every month. As such, we serve and support thousands of South Africans on a monthly basis.”

Without this unending focus on delighting the customer, the tank in WeBuyCars would have dried up long ago. The brand is no longer about only car sales; it is now a strategic partner for consumers and industry, and that is why it continues to thrive.